Agenda item

Report No: COU/SE/17/003

Council considered Report No: COU/SE/17/003 (and Report No: COU/SE/16/022 (revised), attached to Report No: COU/SE/17/003), which sought approval for a new Scheme of Members’ Allowances for St Edmundsbury Borough Council, as devised by the West Suffolk Joint Independent Remuneration Panel.

On 20 December 2016, this item was deferred by Council to allow Members further time to consider the extensive number of recommendations and to submit any comments they may have had on the proposals for consideration by the Panel.

The Panel had now considered Members’ comments on its proposals and had made a revision to its original report (Report No: COU/SE/16/022) presented on 20 December 2016, which as a consequence had meant that Appendix A attached to that report had also been revised.  The revision made by the Panel related to the chairmanship of the West Suffolk Joint Standards Committee, as highlighted in Section 2 of Report No: COU/SE/17/003.

For the reasons set out in paragraph 3.1 of Report No: COU/SE/17/003 and for clarity, the recommendations put forward by the Panel were reproduced in paragraph 3.2 of that report.

Councillor Houlder, Portfolio Holder for Resources and Performance, thanked the Panel for taking the time to consider Members’ comments and for making an amendment to their report in light of those comments received. He acknowledged and commended the significant amount of work undertaken by the Panel; however he did not feel that the proposed new Members’ Allowance Scheme could be supported or adopted for the following reasons:

(a)     The changes were fundamentally different to the current scheme and it was not felt necessary to make this deviation from the current scheme.

(b)     Whilst changes to the existing scheme may be required in the future this was not the right time to do this.

(c)     The proposals would result in an unnecessary increase to the budget.

(d)     Given the changes proposed were so fundamental to the scheme, it was difficult to accept some parts without altering the rest, therefore it was considered appropriate for the proposals to be rejected completely at this time.

Councillor Houlder then moved the following alternative motion to that proposed in the report, which was duly seconded by Councillor Carol Bull:

That:

(1)     the 36 specific recommendations of the West Suffolk Joint Independent Remuneration Panel, as set out in Appendix A (Revised) to Report No: COU/SE/16/022, be rejected in their entirety and therefore a new Members’ Allowance Scheme for St Edmundsbury Borough Council not be adopted; and

(2)     as a consequence of the above, the current St Edmundsbury Borough Council Members’ Allowance Scheme be extended beyond 31 March 2017 until a date of expiry of 31 May 2019.  

Councillor David Nettleton proposed an amendment to the above substantive motion, as shown below  in bold and strikethrough as appropriate, which was duly seconded by Councillor Trevor Beckwith:

That:

(1)     The following be approved for incorporation into the existing Members’ Allowances Scheme:

(a)    The Basic Allowance should incorporate the £180 broadband payment for all 45 Members of the Council, resulting in a Basic Allowance of £5,585pa.  The multiplier for Special Responsibility Allowance should remain calculated on £5,405; and

(b)    reference to renunciation be removed from the Scheme of Allowances.  Members should be paid the full amount of the Basic Allowance (£5,585pa); 

therefore the remaining  36 specific recommendations of the West Suffolk Joint Independent Remuneration Panel, as set out in Appendix A (Revised) to Report No: COU/SE/16/022, be rejected in their entirety and therefore a new Members’ Allowance Scheme for St Edmundsbury Borough Council not be adopted; and

(2)     as a consequence of the above, the current St Edmundsbury Borough Council Members’ Allowance Scheme (as amended) be extended beyond 31 March 2017 until a date of expiry of 31 May 2019.  

Councillor Nettleton considered that approval of the above would make the existing Scheme less cluttered and easier to understand.  Should any Member choose not to keep their allowance, then Councillor Nettleton felt they should give it to charity or similar.

A debate was held on the amendment, where it was clarified it was no longer possible under the current Regulations  to renounce an allowance anyway; however, Members understood Councillor Nettleton’s point. 

The amendment to the substantive motion was then put to the vote and was defeated. 

A debate was then held on the substantive motion.  Support was given by the majority of Members to the reasons for rejecting the adoption of a new Scheme in its entirety, as outlined in Councillor Houlder’s proposal above; however the extensive work of the Panel was acknowledged and appreciated. 

On the motion of Councillor Houlder, seconded by Councillor Bull, and duly carried, it was

RESOLVED:

That:

(1)     the 36 specific recommendations of the West Suffolk Joint Independent Remuneration Panel, as set out in Appendix A (Revised) to Report No: COU/SE/16/022, be rejected in their entirety and therefore a new Members’ Allowance Scheme for St Edmundsbury Borough Council not be adopted; and

(2)     as a consequence of the above, the current St Edmundsbury Borough Council Members’ Allowance Scheme be extended beyond 31 March 2017 until a date of expiry of 31 May 2019.  

(Mr Clive MacLeod, member of the West Suffolk Joint Independent Remuneration Panel left the meeting at the conclusion of this item.)